‘I’ll be at Scottish paradebecause it’s a second home’

William Houston is the only member of Tullintrain Purple Star LOL No. 1969, he is aware of who will be travelling, but he expects to be joined by at least a couple of thousand Orangemen from across Northern Ireland.

The staunch unionist who once stood unsuccessfully as an Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) candidate in the local Council elections in Londonderry also had harsh words for the leaders of the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP).

“It’s well seen,” he said, “that the two leaders of the Scottish nationalists, Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon, are named after parts of fish [sic], because they are as slippy as eels and you couldn’t trust them. They’re a pair of cods.”

But it’s the strong link between Scotland and Ulster that’s really driven the Tullintrain man to get involved in the Scottish campaign.

“Although, I’m the only one from the Lodge, people from all over Northern Ireland are going to be travelling.

“I see Scotland as my second home. It’s the place were my people come from originally and I’m fully behind the ‘Better Together’ campaign. That’s why I’m going.”

He believes tens of thousands of his fellows from across Scotland and England will descend on the Scottish capital for Saturday’s demonstration.

As regards the vote next Thursday (September 18), Mr Houston says he has “no worries” about Scotland voting ‘Yes,’ confident the alleged financial benefits of the union, insisted upon by the ‘Better Together’ campaigners, will trump nationalist sentiment.

Meanwhile, the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland is leaving it up to individual Orangemen and Lodges to decide whether or not they wish to attend and are allowing the Grand Lodge of Scotland to make the running in the anti-independence campaign. Yet, thousands of Orangemen from across Londonderry resolved to support the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland in its campaign against Scottish independence during the Twelfth this year. Equally, Grand Master in Ireland, Edward Stevenson will address Saturday’s demonstration alongside his Scottish and English counterparts.